Recent Streetsblog CHICAGO posts about CDOT

Downtown Median Becomes Chicago’s First People Plaza

By Steven Vance | Jun 25, 2013 | 9 Comments

The Gateway, Chicago’s first “People Plaza” seating area, recently opened at what Transportation Commissioner Gabe Klein described as an “under-acknowledged public space” in the median of State Street between Wacker Drive and Lake Street. The installation is funded by the Chicago Loop Alliance, one of the downtown chambers of commerce, via a Special Service Area, […]

Marshall Bike Lanes Are Getting Correct Signs Seven Months After Installation

By Steven Vance | Jun 18, 2013 | 4 Comments

In November, Chicago Department of Transportation crews installed bike lanes on Marshall Boulevard from Sacramento Drive in Douglas Park to 24th Boulevard in Little Village, near Maria Saucedo Scholastic Academy. On most of this stretch the lanes are protected by parked cars on the west side of the street; to make room for the protected […]

An IDOT Engineer Discusses the Department’s Ban on Protected Bike Lanes

By John Greenfield | Jun 17, 2013 | 23 Comments

This February, Steven Vance reported that the Illinois Department of Transportation has been prohibiting the installation of protected bike lanes on state jurisdiction roads in Chicago at least until the Chicago Department of Transportation collects three years of “safety data” on existing Chicago protected lanes. That means the earliest the ban would be lifted would […]

New Bike Lane Design on Milwaukee Should Reduce Crashes and Frustration

By Steven Vance | Jun 13, 2013 | 20 Comments

The bikeway upgrades on Milwaukee Avenue between Elston Avenue and Kinzie Street were completed Wednesday, adding bike lanes separated from traffic with parking and flexible posts. Other features include green striping before intersections and the city’s first two-lane bike lanes allowing faster cyclists to pass slower ones on the bridge over the Ohio Street ramp to […]

CDOT Ups the Outreach to 11 With Mailing to 1.5 Million Drivers

By Steven Vance | Jun 11, 2013 | 8 Comments

Since the third week of May, 1.55 million Chicagoans (!) have received a double-sided leaflet called “Tips for Motorists” informing people how to “make our streets safer for everyone.” The mailing, sent by the City Clerk’s office with the car sticker renewal form, was three years in the making and likely has the lowest cost […]

New York’s Experience Shows Ashland Bus Lanes Won’t Cause Carmaggedon

By Steven Vance | May 23, 2013 | 12 Comments

Converting a travel lane in each direction on Ashland Avenue to center-running bus lanes, greatly improving transit performance on the corridor, won’t lead to Chicago’s own version of Carmageddon (which actually never materialized). Data from New York City’s Select Bus Service on First and Second Avenues – where two travel lanes gave way to bus […]

More Bike-Share Locations Revealed; Full List Available Later This Month

By Steven Vance | May 10, 2013 | 5 Comments

Last month we reported on the first bike-share stations locations to be made public. Now more station locations are being revealed every day on the official Divvy Bikes Facebook page, and 1st Ward Alderman Proco “Joe” Moreno has released a map of 19 locations. The Divvy Bikes Facebook page will reveal another location each day, […]

Chicago to Pursue Center-Running Bus Rapid Transit on Ashland Avenue

By Ben Fried | Apr 19, 2013 | 29 Comments

After a year of study and outreach, today Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the Chicago Transit Authority, and the Chicago Department of Transportation announced plans for center-running Bus Rapid Transit on Ashland Avenue. Once implemented, the project could set a national precedent for high-quality BRT, improving transit speeds as much as 80 percent during rush hour, according […]

Complete Streets Guidelines Codify Principles of Multi-Modal Streets

By Steven Vance | Apr 12, 2013 | 2 Comments

“…the transportation profession is coming to understand that more roads, more lanes, and longer signal cycles only induces more traffic.” You can find that statement on page 80 of the Complete Streets Design Guidelines [PDF] released yesterday by the Chicago Department of Transportation, which says loud and clear that designing streets to just move cars […]

Best. CDOT. Press. Release. Ever. “Potholepalooza” Rocks.

By John Greenfield | Apr 5, 2013 | 13 Comments

When it was time to get the word out about ways to report pothole locations for an upcoming repair blitz, the Chicago Department of Transportation opted for a strategy that was, as the saying goes, “so crazy it just might work.” The agency is encouraging citizens to alert the city about as many dangerous divots […]

Secrets of the Pedway: Behind the Scenes With CDOT Planner Susan Mea

By Keith Griffith | Mar 26, 2013 | 2 Comments

Keith Griffith is a Chicago-based freelance writer and arts critic. The Chicago Pedway, a warren of corridors connecting over 50 downtown buildings with Metra and CTA stations, can be baffling to navigate. But with dozens of private owners controlling different sections, administering the system might be an even bigger challenge. Susan Mea, a veteran planning […]

CDOT and Taxi Regulator to Post Dooring Awareness Decals in Cab Windows

By Steven Vance | Mar 26, 2013 | No Comments

Chicago’s taxi regulator, Rosemary Krimbel, the Business Affairs and Consumer Protection commissioner, revealed on Twitter this Sunday that her department is teaming up with the Chicago Department of Transportation to build awareness that people opening car doors need to look out for passing cyclists. Based on a simple reminder — “LOOK” — this city-led anti-dooring […]

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